Key holder



Dec. s, 1938. K. BASSL-ER 2,138,994

KEY HOLDER Filed March 25, 1.937

INVENTOR. fiar/fiasskr BY WM ATTORNEYS.

Patented Dec. 6, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE KEY HOLDER RhodeIsland Application March 25,

11 Claims.

This invention relates to a key holder; and has for one of its objectsthe provision of a device which will be of ornamental appearance and yetone in which the loop which holds the keys will be held firmly in closedposition but may be opened when desired by manual manipulation to removethe keys therefrom.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a key holder in theform of a whip which will have the lash end of the whip coiled about thehandle and yet will be movable on the handle so as to prevent theaccumulation of dirt between the lash portion of the whip and the handleadjacent its points of contact therewith.

Another object of the invention is the utilization of the movable lashportion of the whip for detachably securing the loop portion of the keyholder in locked position.

Another object of the invention is to utilize the resilient loop portionof the key holder for holding the lash portion which slides on thehandle, against sliding therealong when the parts are in lockedposition. 7

Another object of the invention is the provision of means in the handleportion of the whip to positively align the loop portion of the keyholder so that the entire handle and loop portion of the whip will bemaintained in symmetrical relation with reference to a single centralplane.

With these and other objects in View, the invention consists of certainnovel features of construction, as will be more fully described, andparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the key holder in locked or closedposition;

Fig. 2 is a view similar to-Fig. 1, showing the loop portion detached orunlocked; and

Fig. 3 is an edge View of the parts as arranged in Fig. 1.

It is found in the use of key holders in the shape of a whip, such asare designed to be attached to a chain, that where a portion is coiledabout the handle this portion must be soldered to the handle andcorrosion exists at the solder point and also dirt accumulates in thecrevices between the coils and handle which is removable with greatdifficulty, thus causing the same to be unsightly. Further, the end ofthe loop portion of a device of this character is often secured bycausing the loop portion to be off center or at one side of the handleproviding an unsymmetrical relation; and in order to provide a keyholder to avoid these undesirable results I have recessed the 1937,Serial No. 132,996

handle and positioned the end of the loop portion in the recess and soprovided the lash portion which is coiled about the handle that it mayslide along the handle and slip over the end of the loop portion of thekey holder so as to lock the same in the recess, thus avoiding thecollection of dirt and also providing the entire structure symmetricalwith reference to a single plane; and the following is a more detaileddescription of the present embodiment of this invention, illustratingthe preferred means by which these advantageous results may beaccomplished:

With reference tothe drawing, the key holder is formed of resilientmetal or wire which is tapered throughout its length and shaped in theform of a whip. The handle portion H) is of larger diameter and hasknurling ll thereon, while the end portion l2 of the loop i3 is of thesmaller diameter. This handle is flattened as at M and a ring I5 isinserted through an opening 16 in the fiat portion M for connection to achain or other flexible member. The knurled portion of the handle isrelatively stifi and rigid and as the wire merges into the smallerdiameter portion I! of the loop it becomes more bendable and is bent ona curve as at 18 into the shape illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, while thetip end of this loop portion I9 is turned outwardly as shown in Fig. 2.A recess 20 is formed in the handle portion H near its juncture with thelash portion ll to receive this turned out end l9 and hold it againstsideways movement.

About the handle there is helically coiled a wire 2| which is ofsubstantially the size of the end of the lash portion and has theappearance of a part thereof. This member 2| is sufficiently looselyhelically coiled-so as to be slidable longitudinally of the handle alongthe same, while the lower convolution of the coil 22 is extendedoutwardly somewhat so as to slide over the tip end of the lash l9 whenthe same is located in the recess 20 so as to lock the same in position.The natural inherent resiliency of the loop 53 is to cause its end is tospring outwardly away from the recess and thus when the end I9 is heldin the recess and the slide portion 2| is moved down to embrace this endthe outward springing tendency of the loop locks the slide member 2|against movement.

The slide 2| is blocked from sliding off of the handle by the flattenedportion l4 and also the ring 15. As the slide is movable along thehandle with no solder connection, there is no discoloring of parts noris there present a solder connection which is subject to corrosion. Aswill be seen from Fig. 3 the loop portion i3 is in perfect alignmentwith the handle of the whip and is symmetrically arranged with referencethereto.

The foregoing description is directed solely towards the constructionillustrated, but I desire it to be understood that I reserve theprivilege of resorting to all the mechanical changes to which the deviceis susceptible, the invention being defined and limited only by theterms of the appended claims.

I claim:

l. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar portion and arelatively bendable portion extending from one end of the bar and bentinto loop form with its free end adjacent said bar, said free end beingresilient and tending to spring outwardly when the loop is closed, andmeans shaped to resemble a prolongation of said free end of said bar andslidably mounted on said bar to detachably embrace said free end of thebendable portion and lock said loop in closed position.

2. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar portion and arelatively bendable tapering portion extending from one end of the barand bent into 100p form with its free end adjacent said bar anddeflected outwardly, said free end tending to spring outwardly when theloop is closed, and means shaped to resemble a prolongation of said freeend of said bar and slidably mounted on said bar to detachably embracesaid deflected free end of the bendable portion and lock said loop inclosed position.

3. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar portion and arelatively bendable portion extending from one end of the bar and bentinto loop form with its free end adjacent said bar, and coiled meansslidably mounted on said bar to detachably embrace said free end of thebendable portion and close said loop.

4. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar portion and arelatively bendable tapering portion extending from one end of the barand bent into a resilient loop with its free end of smaller diameteradjacent said bar and deflected outwardly, and coiled means slidablymounted ion said bar to detachably embrace said defle'cted free end ofthe bendable portion and lock said loop in closed position.

5. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar portion and arelatively bendable portion extending from one end of the bar and bentinto loop form with its free end adjacent said bar, and a coiled memberencircling said bar and slidable thereon to detachably receive the freeend of said bendable portion to close said loop.

6. A key holder comprising a relatively stiif bar portion and arelatively bendable portion extending from one end of the bar and bentinto loop form with its free end adjacent said bar, and a helicallydisposed member encircling said bar and slidable thereon to also receivethe free end of said bendable portion to close said loop.

'7. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar portion with a recessin its surface and a relatively bendable portion extending from one endof the bar and bent into loop form with its free end in said recess,said free end being resilient .and tending to spring outwardly when theloop is closed, and means shaped to resemble a prolongation of said freeend of said bar and slidably mounted on said bar and in embracingrelation with the free end of said loop to prevent the exit of said freeend from said recess.

'ment of said free end from said recess.

9. A key holder comprising a relatively stiiT bar portion with a recessin its surface and a relatively bendable portion extending from one endof the bar and bent into loop form with its free end deflected outwardlyand located in said recess, and a member helically encircling said barand slidable thereon to also receive the free end of said loop and holdthe same in said recess. I

10. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar constituting a handleportion with a longitudinally extending recess in its side surface, arelatively bendable tapering portion whose end of larger diameterextends away from one end of said bar and bent into loop form with itsfree end of smaller diameter directed inwardly and upwardly at an angletoward the bar portion in longitudinal alignment therewith, the terminalend portion of said loop being deflected laterally outwardly from thebar to provide a longitudinally curved inner side portion havingengagement in said recess when the loop is closed, and a coiled membermovable on the handle portion and extending substantially throughout thelength of the same, said coiled member at its lower end terminating in aconvolution closely adjacent to said recess and extending outwardly toprovide an eye for detachably receiving the tip end of the loop when thecurved inner portion is in said recess and to lock the loop in closedposition.

11. A key holder comprising a relatively stiff bar constituting a handleportion with a longitudinally extending recess in its side surface, arelatively bendable tapering portion whose end of larger diameterextends away from one end of said bar and bent into loop form with itsfree end of smaller diameter directed inwardly and upwardly at an angletoward the bar portion inlongitudinal alignment therewith, the terminalend portion of said loop being deflected laterally outwardly from thebar to provide a longitudinally curved inner side portion havingengagement in said recess when the loop is closed, and a coiled membermovable on the handle portion and extending substantially throughout thelength of the same, said coiled member at its lower end terminating in aconvolution closely adjacent to said recess and extending outwardly toprovide an eye for detachably receiving the tip end of the loop when thecurved inner portion is in said recess and to lock the loop in closedposition, said coiled member at its lower extremity having a convolutionat an angle to said handle portion to overlie

